Granby

Located in eastern Essex County, Granby is bounded by East Haven, Ferdinand, Maidstone, Guildhall and Victory. According to tradition, Granby was named in honor of Lord or Earl Granby John Manners (1721-1770), who came from a long line of distinguished British noblemen, and had himself served as a privy councilor and lord justice. He was bearer of the Queen’s scepter at the coronations of both George II and George III, but his greatest service was as a military commander in the Seven Years War.

Granby got off to a slow start, and after 1816, the year without a summer, the population shrank so much that the town gave up its incorporation. R organized and re-incorporated in 1822, it grew to just under 400 residents in 1890, down to 52 in 1970. Once famous for its abundance of white pine, Granby was once the site of several large logging operations. Though it was never more than a few buildings grouped around some sawmills, the hamlet of Stevens Mills was a railroad stopping point, and appeared on most maps throughout the first part of the 20th century. At one time the mills employed over 100 men, with an even larger group out cutting timber to feed the mills. As the timber went, so did the population.

The hill, heavily forested landscape is prime hunting ground for deer, moose and other game. There are stories in the Vermont Historical Gazetteer of men from Barnet traveling up the Passumpsic River, before the settlement of St. Johnsbury, to Granby for hunting and fishing. Granby is accessed by Granby Road, which runs east-west from Route 102 in in Guidlhall to Victory Road in Victory. Guildhall is 9 miles away, while Burke is 13 miles.

Schools: The town pays tuition for children to attend any elementary or secondary education state approved school.

2018 Town Meetings Highlights: The school district voted to sell the town the vacant one-room Granby schoolhouse, which closed in 2006. In turn, the town will sell the building for $1 to the Victory-Granby Holiday in the Hills Historical Preservation Group, ho intend to use it as a museum.